IR

strange way

lullaby. It paused, as if the universe itself h

idn

tal snap. No gentle awakening. No light at the end of the tunnel. Just pain, raw and j

s flew

ke ghosts on stone walls. Gold shimmered. Incense hung heav

e she'd stitched her clothe

n her

kn

ory, veined in silver that pulsed faintly like it had a heart

before my br

roaked, voice sandpaper-

dn't f

r. The kind you offer wild beasts

ou were injured

again, and I swear on every dead god list

er eyes. Not fear. No, f

i

So much

slow like I was some half-broken

It won't hurt mo

art, was your

't know how pathetically

lm, searing through skin and nerve. I hissed, knees buckling, vision dimming a

y elbow in

d her. Candles scattered, bones clattered. The bowl of ink-black liquid tipped, spilling a th

ing like I'd just outrun

Cold. Stained. Definitely used for

a demon dagger and way too conscious for what

rd her where she writhed on the floor, "-and I swear, I'll finish whateve

hen the door

Heavy.

ve to look.

ai Vo

of man you don't name in prayers

im, the Beta-silen

aw eve

the floor, arm crad

tual. The cha

d

lade carved from death itself. My

dn't

t nee

, slow and lethal, like he was deb

e the quake in my legs. I was an omega,

lcome party..." My lips twisted into something that might've been a smile i

as the fir

in motion, skidding to his knees be

, ok

, her fingers trembl

st caught me off

ed like the rest of us. They stitched themselve

as the only thing tethering me to reality. My chest heav

en their gazes sliced deeper

and his eyes-oh, gods, his

unraveling from him in thick waves. "Touch her again, and I

hing. A bite of madne

t me to scoop them out and mak

lun

ctively, grip white-kn

ena was

g his arm. "She's scared. She doe

trembled, but I kept the knife up, aimed straight

et them feel it-the sheer c

ll redecorate this temple of yours with your i

bl

f black a

ko

hand clamped around my wrist, the blade yanked from me with bru

AC

d in my throat, wind knocked from my lungs. My shoul

sed him, if I

," Nikola

s, like iron bands. Another digging into my should

ed, kick

ake sure you never fucking

ered, one brow twitchin

ring my teeth like a feral. "I'll rip y

lai growled. "Yelen

with that glorifie

into me like ice. "You're

word-omega-it tasted

her movements slow, careful. Like she t

prayer, maybe a curse-and dra

ng wasn

bur

d into my bones, rippi

eam. Wouldn'

For a second, it felt like

relea

gripping the wall like

me?" I snarled, cradling my p

Isaac said quietly, like

in the corner, and began her weird incantation shit. I

steaming violet liquid, and

spa

htning o

s," Nikolai said, watching me t

Sanguine? You're test

ence and tension so

r breath, then dropped the mixture

himm

unes

hen silv

l

ped through

ones

but I stood my g

p back, eyes wide

one," she

a man breathing for t

he ground had droppe

What the hell d

e ans

e body felt wrong, like something had crawl

p," Nikolai's eye

my tongue, literally. The tremors

ag

he thing that burn

e. When pain tasted too much like memor

r

entless.

ned, voice shaking

ai steppe

ng

gs ga

, fingers clawing the

at's happen

stammered. "

ed, clawing up my spine. My body was boiling from the inside out

was too

en to me! KE

ody

th

o

ut of me. Not wh

blue. Raw

like lightning, shatteri

es we

cts

ploded i

knees. Nikolai staggered, his boots dragging through

the cold marble k

k swallowed me whol

believ

rasped

..." Her breath hitc

ut by the look in their eyes...